With podcasting growing rapidly as a medium, a new generation of audio-recording tools are appearing. Zencastr is a great example. The company’s new product, launched today, is designed to make it easier to record high-quality audio for interviewees based anywhere in the world.

The problem the company is solving is that phone interviews sound horrible, and VOIP solutions like Skype often don’t degrade very well. In other words: A poor internet connection can ruin an interview. Instead of recording audio that comes through a phone line, Zencastr enables the interviewer to record the audio on the interviewee’s computer. There are other ways of doing that, of course (such as explaining to a podcast guest how to record audio on a computer, iPhone or separate recorder), but that assumes that the interviewees are technically adept enough to be able to record, save and transmit the files, which isn’t always the case.

“The capabilities of modern web browsers are opening the door to a whole new level of web-based applications,” said Josh Nielsen, founder at Zencastr, explaining that new real-time technologies have made it possible to build a full podcasting studio that can be consumed through a browser.

Zencastr’s product works in a web browser, so a guest can simply click on a link. The interviewer can see the status of the recording, to ensure that the interview is being taped properly.

Featuring a foolproof design and a relentless focus on making podcasting as high-quality and easy as possible, Zencastr includes a ton of features that makes production easier. It’s possible to record in lossless formats, for example, or to have a separate track per participant to make editing sound far more professional. The service also has an automatic post-production feature that helps equalize and mix audio so it sounds as good as possible.

The software starts with an 8-hour-per-month hobbyist tier for free, or a $20-per-month professional tier.